The Croatian President, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, has congratulated the President of Montenegro Milo Djukanovic on his election victory, pledging Croatia's support to Montenegro on its path to European Union membership, the President's Office said on Monday.

Grabar-Kitarovic phoned Djukanovic to congratulate him, and wished him a lot of success in his work.

Croatia is committed to supporting Montenegro’s EU membership path based on individual merit, and is willing to continue sharing its own experience from the process with Montenegro, the President’s Office said.

The two presidents expressed their readiness to further strengthen the relations between Croatia and Montenegro, and to resolve any outstanding issues between the two countries in the spirit of mutual respect.

They noted the responsibility of the two countries as NATO members in ensuring stability, security and prosperity in the entire region of Southeast Europe. They also emphasised the importance of the Montenegrin minority in Croatia and the Croatian minority in Montenegro as a link between the two countries and the commitment to further improving their status.

Djukanovic, the candidate and leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), won 54.15 percent of votes in the first round of the presidential election on Sunday. It will be his second term as president. Djukanovic has already served six terms as prime minister.